All Forum Posts by: John Santero

I would suggest joining the knoxville REIA is you are not already a member. Victor who runs it is a very interesting and intelligent person and the group there is mostly experienced players. good luck.

Thanks- I forgot to mention that it is a exterior/interior grade of paint. Thanks for the info

I fooled around with paint and coverage for years. Cheap paint is just that -cheap. The color/primer combos are hit and miss- valspar 2000 is fair. I started using the exterior paint combo paint/primer for interior use. It covers great-thicker paint. Has anyone tried this and is there any repercussions other than intitally it takes longer for the paint fumes to clear?

Keeping each property in a "folder" is the easiest way to deal with it at a quick glance. There are several ways to manage those tasks- quick books to excel sheets. With that said, I keep separate bank accounts (all my properties are in separate land trust ownership's so different names for each) and am able to transfer back and forth electronically (which is also go for record keeping). I also keep a separate account for tenants to send rent monies which is swept into my general fund with a push of a button. Keep in mind I just have to have $100 in an account so it does not cost me anything- check with your bank- good luck

I deal with low end rentals and I agree with part of what alex franks mentions with regard to ARV. Cash flow is the objective here. If you can get $900 from a $40K investment I would do it in a heard beat then once you have your renter and some seasoning- get a loan and pull out some cash and do it again.

i have managed and owned sec8 housing units for SFH and multi for 10 years. This is it in a nutshell- If I have a piece of property that attacks renters living paycheck to paycheck- that dont have bank accounts, credit cards and is not in a great area (C) - then the property is a sec8 candidate.

PROS: I can get market rent (or a little bit lower) but guaranteed income. I rent ready the property with HUD guidelines - which usually costs $4-500 more- so I know my inspection will pass. I know what my rent will be- (its posted by bedrooms and zip codes) so I know what level rehab is needed.

CONS: Your dealing with the government. knows the rules (your tenants do!) and screen your tenants as you normally do -just without the financial portion. 

Your tenants can use HUD against you -ie repairs, but you can use HUD to your benefit too- Once the tenant is on voucher - they do not want to lose it!

I suggest you offer to give away some information FREE ie- market analysis of their home and create a drop page to get their email address. The yellow letter should be created as a soft sell- not a I BUY YOUR DISTRESSED HOUSE - in your face stuff. They get those all the time. Have them email you to help them out. solve their problem - move on in their lives.

I like to get face to face with a seller once I did some due diligence on the property. I like to tour the house and list what repairs are still needed and how much those repairs cost. Then I ask them if that seems reasonable and what other items I missed. You will be surprise on what sellers tell me.

Then I show them recent comps on what fixed up homes go for and where they are at now. I show them that with them carrying paper and allowing me to put my money into the property - then we can achieve the top price. Therefore- we both can profit and will make alittle bit more on the back end as well as interest during the rehab and they will be secured with a trust deed. I write all this out showing them the numbers.

your other tenants should have 100% liability each- not 1/3 each. let them know that accepting this person as a co-leasee they accept future liability. Maybe ask for a additional deposit?

People are people. It might make sense and it might be easy to produce a POF letter but hey- if this guy is a player and is just kicking the tires and looking - and you can verify that he is a player- ask for your POF when he makes the offer and dont piss him off! This may just be his quirk and you may loose a good buyer.